'You don't expect your best bowlers to concede so many runs' : Dhoni

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India captain MS Dhoni oozed confidence that substitute players would come to the party in the ODI series against SA. More... Saturday 20th February 2010 MSD thinks substitutes will deliver India captain MS Dhoni oozed confidence that substitute players would come to the party in the ODI series against SA. Dhoni conceded the team would miss the likes of Zaheer Khan (leg), Gautam Gambhir (groin) and Yuvraj Singh (wrist) through injury and Harbhajan Singh because of his sister's marriage but asserted the substitutes have it in them to deliver the goods. "The confidence of the team is good. As far as missing a few players is concerned, we are missing some player or the other in every series," Dhoni said after the team's net session at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium. "I think it is a good opportunity for young players to prove that they belong to the international level. Besides, it also gives you the chance to test your bench strength," he said. "We will see whatever the best combination we can pick according to the situation and the wicket. We will miss a few players but whatever players we have in the team, they all have done well whenever given a chance. I don't think it should be a big worry and whoever gets a chance will do well," Dhoni said. Dhoni said Harbhajan would have been useful against the South Africans, whom he tormented in Kolkata but nothing could be done about the off-spinner's absence. "Harbhajan is a great spinner. He bowls well and does both the roles -- containing as well taking wickets. Of course we will miss him but hopefully everything would go well," he said. Talking about the bowling unit, Dhoni said the abundunce of part-timers would help the team's cause against South Africa. "You can say we have quite a few batsmen who can bowl. We are still searching for the perfect all-rounder, a fast bowling all-rounder, because it balances the team combination. "In this side it is good that we have batsmen who can bowl like (Virender) Sehwag, Abhishek Nayyar, Yusuf Pathan, (Ravindra) Jadeja and Suresh Raina. So we have quite a few batsmen who can bowl. There is some extra help in case one of your regular bowler is struggling," he said. Dhoni also hinted that Uttar Pradesh seamer Praveen Kumar is in with a good chance of playing the first ODI of the three-match series tomorrow. "If you see Praveen, he has not got the pace. He is not an express bowler but I feel he is a street-smart cricketer. The change in length, speeds and the variation that he has got and the amount of cricket that he has played really helps him," he said. With Zaheer out of action, Dhoni said Ashish Nehra would have to mentor the young seamers. "Ashish Nehra is an experienced cricketer and has been around the circuit for a long time. It helps when you have one experienced guy like him. If you see our bowling department right now, it is not a very experienced bowling line up. So Ashish will definitely have an effect on other bowlers when it comes to grooming them," the Indian skipper explained. Overall, Dhoni felt, Indian bowling was good enough to trouble the visiting team. "Jadeja has played a few games and we have ® Ashwin and (Amit) Mishra also. I think the bowling strength is decent. If you compare it to the one which had Zaheer or Harbhajan, it is a big difference but at the same time it is up to the individuals how they shape up for the game," he said. Asked if he would like to play purely as a batsman, leaving the wicket-keeping job to Dinesh Karthik, Dhoni said, "I am not a very good fielder so you wont see me do that. Dinesh is anyways a better fielder than me. So it is always better, when we both are playing, that I keep wickets and he fields." Asked for his view on the pitch, Dhoni said, "It's a normal sub-continental wicket. The dew will also be a factor because it is cold in the evenings. So spinners would find it difficult in the latter part of the match." On what could be a par score here, Dhoni said, "A lot depends on what happens on that particular day. Loads of runs have been scored whenever we have played here but at the end of the day you have to see what kind of start you get." Dhoni said the South Africans would prove a tough customer even though he felt they would miss regular skipper Graeme Smith who returned home with a finger injury. "The South Africans are very even balanced side, they have good fielders in the side, good bowlers and batsmen who can capitalise. They are a very good side and we are expecting three very good one-dayers. "(Missing the captain) does affect every side. They will be a bit affected because he (Smith) is rated among their top openers. At the same time, they can't help it and any player who plays in Smith's place will be under pressure," he said. On whether the team had any strategy to contain Hashim Amla, who was South Africa's run-machine in the recent Test series, Dhoni said, "We keep making strategies and there are times when it doesn't work. It was not that we didn't plan against Amla in Tests but he batted quite well in the series. "You do plan things and execute them but at the same time that other individual also changes his game accordingly. We are quite prepared but at the same time we have to see what works and what does not work.

[cowboysfan]

several things wrong about the selection in the team.I really dont want yusuf pathan bowling 10 overs.I would pick 2 spinners instead of sreeshanth .he is not a thinking cricketer and useless in LOI cricket.I dont want karthik in the game,he wont be in team if GG was playing.we should have given Nayar a try,he is great touch too.

[riya]

Who cares about what lovers of ball eater think.We need to sort out our problems.I am not at all satisfied by Dhoni's captaincy and our bowling.No one who can bowls yorkers.

[PaiN_KiLLeR]

some serious issues with our bowling attack. we have no chance of winning the WC with bowlers like Nehra leading our attack ... and we have just a year to fix it.

[thevortex]

The way Dhoni lead the team on the field was laughable. Sreesanth - despite the absolutely vital wicket of Kallis - was not in full flow and never looked in peak condition. That Parnell and Steyn almost won the match should say everything. By the way, this was South Africa's match by rights. I do not agree with the 3rd umpire's decision to not award that as a boundary - where Sachin dived against the ropes to save the boundary. That was a boundary. The replays did not show clearly that he had saved it within the ropes and that he had not touched the ropes when in control of the ball. That call should have gone to the batsman for a boundary. Why would anybody in the world take a new ball bowler and start him off at about the 15th over with next to no attacking fielders? Does that strike anybody as even remotely intelligent as far as captaincy goes? Enough said.

[Texan]

The way Dhoni lead the team on the field was laughable. Sreesanth - despite the absolutely vital wicket of Kallis - was not in full flow and never looked in peak condition. That Parnell and Steyn almost won the match should say everything. By the way, this was South Africa's match by rights. I do not agree with the 3rd umpire's decision to not award that as a boundary - where Sachin dived against the ropes to save the boundary. That was a boundary. The replays did not show clearly that he had saved it within the ropes and that he had not touched the ropes when in control of the ball. That call should have gone to the batsman for a boundary. Why would anybody in the world take a new ball bowler and start him off at about the 15th over with next to no attacking fielders? Does that strike anybody as even remotely intelligent as far as captaincy goes? Enough said.

Which new ball bowler are you talking about? Sreesanth?? He bowled the 6th over of the SAf innings and went for 17 runs! Before that, in 5 overs, SA had managed only 21. That over set the ball rolling for the SAf innings.

[thevortex]

Which new ball bowler are you talking about? Sreesanth?? He bowled the 6th over of the SAf innings and went for 17 runs! Before that' date=' in 5 overs, SA had managed only 21. That over set the ball rolling for the SAf innings.[/quote'] Apologies for the mistake. However, Dhoni's captaincy still leaves much to be desired. Not just his handling of bowlers, not just his field placements, not just his squad selection, but all of them put together. Not to talk about his continued insistence in coming above regular batsmen in Kohli and Raina at No.4.

[Watson87]

Why are people after Dhoni's captaincy. He is the best captain in the Indian cricket history. We managed us to reach 1 in test side, which other captain has acheived that. Even Snotty Dada couldn't reach us number 1 position in ODI, but we are both the 1 in test and soon to be odi 1. Seriously people who are pointing at Dhoni are sore losers.

[Texan]

Apologies for the mistake. However, Dhoni's captaincy still leaves much to be desired. Not just his handling of bowlers, not just his field placements, not just his squad selection, but all of them put together. Not to talk about his continued insistence in coming above regular batsmen in Kohli and Raina at No.4.

I haven't seen much cricket in this series to comment on his captaincy. Perhaps, he has made a few mistakes. But overall, you cannot doubt that he is the best captain available. He has shown in the past that he is better than most former Indian captains. About his place in the batting order, he averages over 50 in ODIs. no other batsman in the history of Indian cricket (past or present) has averaged over 50 over such a long period of time in ODIs. He is the # 1 batsman in the ICC rankings. I fail to understand why he cannot be categorized as a "regular" batsman just because he takes on an additional responsibility of wicket-keeping. On the contrary, he is MUCH BETTER than the regular batsman. He must play at number 4, which allows him to build an innings. One failure is not sufficient to pull him down the order.

[EnterTheVoid]

I missed the match, anywhere where I can watch the highlights ?

[Zap_Brannigan]

How did this happen?? BEL6Bc8YKpI

[Laaloo]

I missed the match' date=' anywhere where I can watch the highlights ?[/quote'] http://www.indiawatch4u.com/2010/02/india-vs-south-africa-1st-odi.html

[Jersey #10]

Saffies made 73 off 43 with two wickets in hand. nuff said...crap death bowling by india

[thevortex]

Why are people after Dhoni's captaincy. He is the best captain in the Indian cricket history. We managed us to reach 1 in test side' date=' which other captain has acheived that. Even Snotty Dada couldn't reach us number 1 position in ODI, but we are both the 1 in test and soon to be odi 1. Seriously people who are pointing at Dhoni are sore losers.[/quote'] Sore losers? Sore losers are not going to point out mistakes in the hope that Dhoni corrects them and India gains all the more from it. Best captain in Indian cricket history? I am sorry, but that is indefensible.

You do know that the rule favours the fielder if there is a doubt? How was it South Africa's match by right? If that boundary was given, Parnell wouldnt have been on strike and Praveen would have been unlikely to bowl a wide the next ball. What about the two clear outs not given by the umpires in the first few overs? Here is the ICC's rule on thrid umpire verdict on fielding. It was issued to calrify Dhoni's dismissal against West indies but holds true in this case too http://www.expressindia.com/news/fullstory.php?newsid=69364 His(thrid umpire's) decision must be made using the existing convention in cricket which dictates that the status quo prevails - that is because no evidence exists of a boundary being scored, no boundary is awarded.

My two cents - did you watch that replay closely? Sachin Tendulkar was in no position to touch the ball without touching the rope. That much was amply clear in that case. That was a definite boundary - no doubt at all. About what would have happened in the next ball had that been given, it is anybody's guess. But one can only say that going by the margin of that defeat and the proximity of this decision to the deciding ball of the match, this decision had a huge part to play in it.

I haven't seen much cricket in this series to comment on his captaincy. Perhaps, he has made a few mistakes. But overall, you cannot doubt that he is the best captain available. He has shown in the past that he is better than most former Indian captains. About his place in the batting order, he averages over 50 in ODIs. no other batsman in the history of Indian cricket (past or present) has averaged over 50 over such a long period of time in ODIs. He is the # 1 batsman in the ICC rankings. I fail to understand why he cannot be categorized as a "regular" batsman just because he takes on an additional responsibility of wicket-keeping. On the contrary, he is MUCH BETTER than the regular batsman. He must play at number 4, which allows him to build an innings. One failure is not sufficient to pull him down the order.

I have never really clamoured for Dhoni to step down from captaincy. If there is somebody I would perhaps like to lead this team, then it would be Sehwag. Not because of any past proven credentials, but because I believe he has the attacking mindset required to lead a No.1 team and keep it at its toes. But we know that is not going to happen. Lets say the chips are down and the team is edging towards the finishing overs of an ODI contest. Would you as a captain and an experienced attacking batsman come out at No.4 leaving relatively inexperienced people such as Raina and Kohli to manage the No.5 and No. 6 positions? This is what Dhoni has been doing. Where he ought to be doing the opposite. A batsman's average and performance does not and should not mean that he comes up in the batting order. Dhoni committed this same blunder in moving Yuvraj up the order. This is a common mistake made in India. A batsman scoring heavily in one position does not automatically become eligible to bat higher. It could perhaps be that he is suited to play in that position. Yuvraj is unfit to play at No.4. He is far more able when it comes to No. 5 or 6. In exactly the same fashion, it is not Dhoni's average or ranking that matters. It is about his game. His game would be more suited and called for lower down the order. Let the batsmen try and build innings up front.

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'You don't expect your best bowlers to concede so many runs' : Dhoni Clearly not happy with the performance of his bowlers in India's one-run victory over South Africa in the first one-dayer in Jaipur, captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said he had not expected his best bowlers to get the pasting from the visiting tailenders. More... 'You don't expect your best bowlers to concede so many runs' February 22, 2010 Clearly not happy with the performance of his bowlers in India's one-run victory over South Africa in the first one-dayer in Jaipur, captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said he had not expected his best bowlers to get the pasting from the visiting tailenders. "So many runs needed by their (SA) tailenders and you don't expect your best bowlers to concede so many runs (at the death). The bowlers need to do better in remaining matches," Dhoni said after the cliffhanger of a contest. "In the initial overs (of South African innings) also the bowlers could have done better," he added. He praised all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja for his fine performance with the bat and ball. "Virender Sehwag could not bowl and we were short of a bowler. But Yusuf Pathan bowled well and Ravindra Jadeja all the difference today. He bowled and batted well," said Dhoni. He also felt that his batsmen got the starts but failed to convert them into big scores. "Most of batsmen got the starts but failed to convert them except for Suresh Raina, Sehwag and (Dinesh) Karthik. We thought we would crossed 300 but we could not," he said. Dhoni said South Africa are capable of bouncing back into the series and his side will have to keep the winning momentum going. "Both are good sides and they can bounce back. But it will be a very good and tightly contested series," said the home team captain. South African captain Jacques Kallis conceded it was frustrating for his side to have lost the match by a mere but would have to regroup for the next match. "Full credit to Wayne Parnell and Dale Steyn for taking us so close (to winning) but id finally did not happen. It is frustrating that we lost after it was so close. But we have to regroup for the next match," he said. Despite the loss, Kallis said he was happy with his side's performance. "I am happy with our performance. We thought India would score 300-plus but we bowled well at the death and then we were almost through while chasing. So it was a really good day of cricket overall," said the visiting captain.

[Zap_Brannigan]

Then maybe its time to look beyond "your best bowlers". Why no try Tyagi instead of giving Nehra, Sreesanth and Ishant Sharman another go? Or try a new spinner instead of bhajji?

[Chandan]

Then maybe its time to look beyond "your best bowlers". Why no try Tyagi instead of giving Nehra' date=' Sreesanth and Ishant Sharman another go? Or try a new spinner instead of bhajji?[/quote'] Ishant and Bhajji were not even in the squad for this ODI.

[Zap_Brannigan]

Ishant and Bhajji were not even in the squad for this ODI.

That's his standard post match answer to bad bowling; "We should have bowled better". Yes we should have but rarely do . Those 2 have been in the squad for the last few series when we sucked esp bowling the last 10 overs.

[graphic23]

That's his standard post match answer to bad bowling; "We should have bowled better". Yes we should have but rarely do . Those 2 have been in the squad for the last few series when we sucked esp bowling the last 10 overs.

How is it his fault, exactly? Against one of the better ODI teams in the world, we need to be on top of our game. Sreesanth, who is fresh (though not enough match practice) bowled completely erratically, and even his fielding left much to be desired of. Ishant, who's been poor in LOIs, is out. Harbhajan is out. Jadeja, Praveen, and even Yusuf to a certain extent performed well. Raina was tried in the last 10 overs, when his first two overs went for 11 and his last one went for 14. He was taken off duly after. Though his field placements have been erratic, he has been trying his best to manage the bowlers and try different strategies. As Outsider said in another thread, he ought to go back to using spinners in the powerplays (as he did today during the batting powerplay by using Jadeja and Yusuf) - that just throws off the opposition's strategies a little bit.

[ensd2]

Still lucky that ishant wasn't selected , sewvag's bowling is more effective and economical . we must give a chance to Tyagy , Sreshant is sreeshant I really don t understand why he is in team